Special report on the Florida Gators soccer team
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – A goal in each half gave Florida soccer a 2-0 win over Kentucky Thursday evening at the Embry-Riddle Soccer Stadium.
How the Goals Were Scored:
Both of Florida’s goals came from its two players from the state of Michigan.
Junior Sarah Troccoli sent Florida into halftime with the lead after scoring in the 45th minute. With the first half winding down, Sarah Troccoli looked up and saw and opportunity. Her right-footed 20-yard shot curled just enough to hit the crossbar and kick in. It was Troccoli’s first goal of the season.
Freshman Madison Alexander hit her second goal of the season to finish the scoring for the match. She received the ball from Gabby Seiler and scored at the far post from 17 yards in the 52nd minute.
Records:
Florida: 12-4-0, 6-2 SEC
Kentucky: 7-11, 2-6 SEC
What the Gators Said:
On today’s match:
“It was a little bit of an odd day. A five o’clock start, a neutral site, but again, I think we handled it pretty well.
“I think we had some really big game changers that went into the game that upped the urgency. We put a challenge to the team to score a goal in the first 15 minutes in the second half. So it was kind of nice to see that two players that came off the bench could make a big difference.” – Florida Head Coach Becky Burleigh
On Sarah Troccoli’s first goal of 2017:
“Oh, I didn’t realize that was her first goal. Well, it came at a good time because it was nice to go into the locker room with a lead instead of 0-0.” – Florida Head Coach Becky Burleigh
On her goal:
“It was the last minute of the half, and I was running down the sideline when [Julia] Lester had it. I heard her telling me to go so she could play it. Then she played it, and I cut it back and then just chipped it.” – junior midfielder Sarah Troccoli
On Florida’s play Thursday:
“It was a little slow in the beginning, but then we talked about pressing higher up at halftime so we kind of picked it up.” – junior midfielder Sarah Troccoli
On her goal:
“Gabby [Seiler] just played me the ball. I was on the top of the 18, and then I just turned, took a touch, and then I had little bit of a gap to shoot then I just put it in the far post.” – freshman forward Madison Alexander
On a lot of players seeing time:
“I think it was a good team effort, and obviously that’s favorable for us Sunday as well because we’ve got a quick turnaround.” – Florida Head Coach Becky Burleigh
Rankings:
Florida ranks No. 20 on the United Soccer Coaches poll<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__unitedsoccercoaches.org_web_Rankings_College-5FRankings_NCAA-5FDI-5FWOMEN_web_rankings_ncaa_di-5Fwomen.aspx&d=DwIFAg&c=pZJPUDQ3SB9JplYbifm4nt2lEVG5pWx2KikqINpWlZM&r=6MG06PG_fwpe7ULfewi6NrFR2j_4ngNZtgGHhDCeRY0&m=V-C5Zo1n5EmHnWxNwLCiiWzBKA1tQCxq8d6XcTLzBgM&s=ewsnFYQ_u8xhAyNZRvfdzqtBOWiEcu8t6edQCUVS5yo&e= >.
Next up:
The Gators finish regular-season league road action Sunday at No. 11 Tennessee. Match is at 1 p.m. at the Regal Soccer Stadium.
Watch the match on SEC Network +<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__www.espn.com_watch_-5F_id_3176433_florida-2Dvs-2Dtennessee-2Dw-2Dsoccer&d=DwIFAg&c=pZJPUDQ3SB9JplYbifm4nt2lEVG5pWx2KikqINpWlZM&r=6MG06PG_fwpe7ULfewi6NrFR2j_4ngNZtgGHhDCeRY0&m=V-C5Zo1n5EmHnWxNwLCiiWzBKA1tQCxq8d6XcTLzBgM&s=8slDGcamRa48xHdCnckat1D0nPjtDWHLW2GfZuHTB8c&e= > or listen to Kyle Crook’s call at GatorVision.com<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__floridagators.com_watch_-3FLive-3D836&d=DwIFAg&c=pZJPUDQ3SB9JplYbifm4nt2lEVG5pWx2KikqINpWlZM&r=6MG06PG_fwpe7ULfewi6NrFR2j_4ngNZtgGHhDCeRY0&m=V-C5Zo1n5EmHnWxNwLCiiWzBKA1tQCxq8d6XcTLzBgM&s=qF4zhzJEKRKpaYHYm3TSG4ZLjOz7k-nyjlfXWYr2i1w&e= >.
Florida (12-4-0, 6-2 SEC) vs Kentucky (7-11, 2-6 SEC)
Stadium: Embry-Riddle Soccer Stadium (352)
Weather: 79 degrees, winds NE 16 mph, 80% humidity
Goals by Period
1
2
Total
Kentucky
0
0
0
Florida
1
1
2
Scoring Summary:
No.
Time
Team
Goal Scorer
Assist
Description
1.
44:34
UF
Sarah Troccoli
Julia Lester
20yd shot, hits crossbar & kicks in
2.
51:57
UF
Madison Alexander
Gabby Seiler
12yd shot
Shots: Kentucky 6, Florida 16
Saves: Kentucky 5 (Abigail Zoeller 5), Florida 3 (Kaylan Marckese 3)